What low-rated game(s) do you think are good (or even great)? Any genre.

What do you consider to be low-rated?

Low open critic... low metacritic... generally reviewed poorly across YT? It's up to you.

Deadly Premonition, an unofficial videogame adaptation of Twin Peaks.

FINAL FANTASY XIII, I actually like it despite being eye candy, was my first FF so I couldn't compared it with the others.

Metal Gear Solid 4, this was low reated among fans, yet it was epic from my perspective, a great conclusion, and I'm a fan of the MGS series, Snake Eater is the best, but I really enjoyed close of the series.

Quest 64. Some of the criticisms of that game are for things like simplicity. the lack of cutscenes, and the fact that it doesn't have the same heavy focus on story that other RPGs of its era have. Thing is, I don't mind the simplicity, and I actually prefer the game to not be story-driven.

The game does have a few legitimate issues, but here is a tip that will mitigate one of them significantly; whenever you finish a battle, you will be facing the same direction you were facing before the battle started.

Also:

Final Fantasy 5 is often considered a weaker entry in the series, particularly in comparison to 4 and 6, by non-Japanese gamers, but it's actually my favorite in the series.

Final Fantasy Mystic Quest is a simple RPG that I like if I'm not in the mood for complexity.

Dragon Warrior (NES) may seem simple and "grindy" by today's standards, but if I'm in the right mood, I enjoy spending hours just wandering around in circles, killing random enemies, and slowly watching my XP grow.

Also, Dragon Warrior 2 (GBC), because normal encounters can actually be challenging, to the point where I actually need to think in each encounter, and where it feels like simply getting to the next town is an accomplishment. This particular version makes the endgame a bit more fair. (With that said, some of the earlier parts are more satisfying in the NES version, plus there's a glitch that allows you to put the NES version's RNG into a state that lets you get a full party before the first battle.)

I've also enjoyed Phantasy Star 3, even if the game is too much for me to do 2 consecutive playthroughs back-to-back. (I've beaten the final boss without using any TP or consumables.)


Remembered another one: Zelda 2, which is actually my favorite game in the series.


Oh, and Castlevania 2, though it's been a while (though I do at least own the GOG version).

Rampage 2: Universal Tour is a fun romp if you just want some goofy smashing. I mean, I only remember enjoying it from childhood, but there were still "better" games out back then.

Turok: Evolution, while I wouldn't call "low rated" by pure metrics, for a while seemed to be the black sheep of the franchise, even though it's decently okay (again, from my childhood). The load times on the Gamecube version were terrible though and the flying sections are some cheap bullshit.

The Caligula Effect: Overdose - https://www.gog.com/en/game/the_caligula_effect_overdose
People either really like the game or outright hate it.

The issue is primarily the Causality Link, which involves making friends with over 500 NPCs. First you need to even be able to talk to them in the first place. A lot of NPCs start out locked, meaning that they won't talk to you until you first make friends with someone that is linked to them.

The next step is to find the NPC and talk to them at least once because if you tried to talk to someone while they were locked, it didn't count. A lot of them are only found in specific areas and will not just be standing around. They like to wander about the zone area in most cases. However once you've done this, finding them again is as simple as instant messaging them on your cell phone to meet up with them.

Something that might add to the tediousness for some people is that the solution is always the same for everyone with an identical trauma.

The only viable solution to all of this is spreadsheets to keep track of where you're at with everyone. Here's mine, which I made using MS Excel 2013 then uploaded to Google docs:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1xzku7M0u4zcO6C7TACdaZrgCx4rUNAD3/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=112882206293283405691&rtpof=true&sd=true

If that doesn't look like fun AND you're not able to just skip optional stuff, this game isn't for you no matter how much you like the game's art and music - which were the two things that I found appealing enough to give the game a try (when it was on sale).

The A Valley Without Wind games have a charm to them and I don't mind most of the negatives. For the first one especially, the uneven difficulty keeps it from being a focused, challenging experience, but it's really chill and relaxing for a roguelike Metroidvania. A lot of people dislike the graphics, but for me there's just something about the presentation that's really charming.

Ultima 9 and Venetica first come to mind.

Lords of the Fallen GOTY -85% 4.49€
Endlessly whinged about wherever you may go online, and currently sitting at 3.3 stars here on GOG.

Dex
47% of critics recommend it, and I completely understand why. What changes things is that it frequently goes on sale at -90% for about 1.49$.

VtM: Coteries of New York and Shadows of New York - I love them both for awesome music, atmosphere and characters. People are mostly bashing them because for some reason they expected RPG and those are visual novels, duh.

Alpha Protocol - It sure has issues but I find them mostly overblown and the rest is absolutely unique on the industry scale.

Fallout Tactics - very enjoyable game with difficulty spikes issues. Kind of "Jagged Alliance Lite" for those who don't want the strategic layer. Frankly my favorite 2D Fallout.

Eye of the Beholder 3 - I was late to the party (played trilogy only couple years ago) but don't see what all fuss is about. Decent game, not less playable than previous two.

Phantasmagoria 2: A Puzzle of Flesh - this is truly "The Room" of games. You need to go with the flow and simply appreciate how mindblowingly ridiculous it all is, from story to writing, dialogs and acting.

I would vouch for the already mentioned Deadly premonition (criminally underrated), Lords of the fallen and Dex, while adding a couple that cross my mind, e.g.: Bionic Commando 2009, Killer is dead, Zeno clash 2, etc. Then while certainly not great and rather average at best you have games like Remothered broken porcelain, Blue estate, Rambo 2014, most of Postal games etc, where for most part they don't warrant such low scores. Meanwhle the crappiest most generic of AAA mainstream titles are guaranteed a "7/10 - IGN" at worst, esp. if part of a well established franchise with big expectations and hype behind it.

From new releases, Wanted: Dead seems to be another example, though the game certainly is overpriced and that might have contributed to "4/10 - IGN". The same reviewer-dude went full hypetrain ahead earlier on though and gave Bayonetta 3 "Masterpiece 9/10 - IGN" rating with a straight face, as a self-proclaimed expert in the genre. These reviews hold as much value to me as any ad or similar marketing tool there is.

I unironically enjoyed Shadow the Hedgehog start to finish. Other than the movement feeling a little slippery I have no real issues with it at all.

I don't know if I'd call Devil's Third actually good, but I enjoyed the core gameplay. It definitely gets more shit than it deserves.

Edit: Final Fight Streetwise. I found this one to have a really solid combat engine that a lot of people tend to not even try to learn because of the admittedly dull, generic presentation. If they'd given this a more traditional Final Fight type look, I'm sure it'd be considered a classic.

I am loathe to defend IGN, but as someone whose favourite genre is the spectacle brawler, Bayonetta 3 deserves its score.

I could also mention Final Fantasy 2. Sure, the game does have its issues, but I *really* like the growth system the game used, instead of the now overused level/XP system that nearly every RPG (and even some non-RPGs) has these days.

You seem to bring this up every so often :))
And there were others too.
Or of course the big more generic one.